This Means War
by aymeria
Summary: Gruvia: Juvia started it—he'd be sure to end it. A series of prank wars and battles between Gray and Juvia set during their 6 months together. [T for language]
1. i

**Author's Note: Well, here's the start of a series of pranks and battles between Gray and Juvia set during their six months together. Pretty short, fun and silly stuff that I really enjoy writing! Hope this little series brings a smile to your face, and as always, reviews are appreciated! ^.^**

* * *

 _i._

* * *

It was like some sick joke woven into his story: Gray Fullbuster would live to have many regrets in his lifetime.

From leading his master to her early death, to letting his spiky-haired pompous ass of a brother, Lyon, meet Juvia – Gray regretted a lot of things, and if he was to list off every resentment he'd ever had, his mind would probably spike into overdrive and explode.

But today, there were only two things he regretted as he stared at his reflection in the mirror.

The first was skipping his morning coffee in favour of getting a few extra minutes in bed, whilst the second regret of the day was a knockback of the first, resulting in him falling asleep on the couch with Juvia only metres away from him.

In other words, he had been completely under her mercy.

"Juvia, what the hell did you do to me?!"

Standing in front of the hallway mirror, Gray's eyes narrowed at the sight of his reflection staring back, unamused, his gaze zeroing in on his hair in particular, which was bunched up into two pigtails at the top of his head instead of messily framing his face.

If anything, seeing himself in this way only brought back painful memories he'd tried so hard to suppress of Erza experimenting on his and Natsu's hair back when they were kids.

He'd lost so many locks of hair in those years — some scars just never healed.

"Doesn't Gray-sama like his new hairstyle?" Juvia asked, edging closer to him with her hands laced innocently behind her back.

He didn't miss the laughter in her voice and he certainly didn't miss the smile she was flashing him in the mirror. In hindsight, he should have seen this coming from a mile away.

Cheeks blazing and braids whipping around his face, he turned on her.

"Ah!" Juvia, oblivious to the dangerous glare he was shooting her, tilted her head to the side, reaching up to pull at his hair fondly. "Gray-sama, you look _so_ sweet!"

 _Sweet?_ He wasn't friggin' _Wendy._

"Never fallin' asleep on the couch _ever_ again…" he muttered, batting her away with a sweep of his hand before reaching up to undo the pigtails, only to find Juvia's hand gripping his wrist, pulling him away from the hair she'd so lovingly braided just an hour before.

"Gray-sama, no! _Don't–_ " she protested, lip jutting out in a pout.

But he ignored her wide eyes and fluttering lashes, adamant on saving whatever shred of dignity he had left. "Oi! Quit it! Let go of me, Juvia!"

"But Juvia spent so long—"

"I don't care. I look stupid—"

Juvia gasped, her eyes wide with disbelief. "Gray-sama could never look stupid!"

He groaned. "Juvia—"

"At least let Juvia take a picture first!"

"What?! Like hell!"

It was one thing for Juvia to see him like this but for Natsu and the rest of the guild? Gray would never hear the end of it. Photos were evidence and evidence would serve as ammo that shitty flame could use against him for the rest of his life.

He could only imagine the new nicknames that would follow this onslaught — as if 'Droopy Eyes' and 'Ice Princess' weren't bad enough as it was.

And then, the sound of her laughter suddenly cut into his thoughts, and looking down, he saw that her hands were no longer around his, but were instead at her lips as she buckled over, eyes closed and face pink.

Gray glared at her through slitted eyes. What in the damn hell was so funny about this?

"Always so serious, Gray-sama," she told him, taking his arm in hers and turning him to face the mirror. "Look!"

Reluctantly, Gray swung his gaze over to his reflection once again, this time to find that one pigtail had fallen limp against his cheek whilst the other stuck up proud, the stray locks of hair angled up in all different directions.

He looked like he'd been struck by a hundred volts of Laxus. If it had even been possible, he looked _worse_ than before.

Juvia stood beside him, her cheek pressed into his shoulder as she watched him in the mirror with a smile bright on her lips.

And somehow, despite how ridiculous he looked and felt, the corners of his own mouth twitched too.

"You know what this means, right?"

Her eyes shot up to meet his hopefully. "That Gray-sama should let Juvia braid his hair more often?"

"It means," he said, a smirk forming on his lips, "I have to get you back for this."

Juvia turned to look at him properly now, her eyebrows dipping in confusion. "Eh?"

Gray chuckled to himself, shaking his head at her. She may have messed with his hair in an act of innocence and affection, but he was prepared to see it as a first strike of battle — it was more fun that way.

"That's right," he said, placing both his hands on her shoulders. "This means w _ar."_

* * *

 _i. braiding his hair whilst he sleeps_


	2. ii

**Author's Note: Thank you for the initial feedback! I'm glad you guys liked the idea, I'm excited about this series too! AHH, finally found some motivation to write some Gruvia, so here you have it: part 2, Gray's first strike of revenge. Hope you enjoy ^.^**

* * *

 _ii._

* * *

Three hours.

Three friggin' agonisingly long, _boring_ hours that Juvia had been asleep for.

Gray sat by the window, his elbow propped up on the ledge as he stared out at their garden with glassy eyes that didn't see anything beyond the rain that was pouring down in heavy sheets.

He yawned.

Four whole days he'd waited for Juvia to take a nap, just so he could carry out his revenge, and now that she'd finally fallen asleep on the couch and he'd done what he needed to do, _she wasn't waking up._

Sighing, he let his forehead slump against the glass, vision blurred by locks of hair and the dewy mist of rain.

At this rate, he'd fall asleep before she woke up.

"Gray-sama?"

Gray sat up abruptly, jerking his head over to the couch where Juvia was now awake, stretching, arms high up above her head to shake off the last remnants of sleep. Her voice was tired, drowsy, yet the sound of his name on her lips had never sounded better to him.

"Finally up, huh?" Gray said, smiling lazily at her. "You were knocked out for a good couple of hours there, Juvia."

"Eh? Juvia was asleep for that long?"

He watched as her fingers combed through her hair, brushing back messy curls to reveal sleepy blue eyes, pink cheeks and what Gray had been looking forward to most: a _spectacular_ amount of black facial hair that even Elfman would have no problem identifying as manly.

"Yeah." Gray bit back the urge to laugh. "Long enough for me to get bored."

It had been a long time since he'd drawn on someone's face while they were snoozing away.

So many times, Natsu had woken up with a face full of scribbles because of him — 128 times to be exact; not that they kept score or anything — but still, it had been so _long,_ that Gray had forgotten how funny it was, and seeing Juvia of all people with his doodles all over her just made it that much more hilarious.

"Hey, Juvia?"

"Yes, Gray-sama?"

Smirking to himself, Gray pulled the black marker out from his pocket and twirled it back and forth between his hands. "Gotta say, you look good today."

"Hah?" Juvia blinked at him, flushing crimson. "J-Juvia?"

"And the beard's a nice touch on you," he added, innocently tapping his chin.

That caught her attention.

"Beard…?" Juvia tilted her head to the side, brow furrowed. "But Juvia doesn't—"

Gray cleared his throat loudly, drawing her to the marker spinning between his fingers. "You sure about that, Juvia?"

When her gaze met his, he smiled, lips curling upwards in a playful smirk—and when her eyes fell to the item in his hands, only to narrow at the sight, he smiled even wider.

Pranking Juvia was new to him—new, enjoyable and just _too easy._

"Gray-sama…what did you do?" she asked, eyeing the marker warily.

She didn't need to wait for a spoken answer because Gray laughing was all the reply she needed.

Jumping up off the couch, Juvia hurried towards the bathroom, flinging the door open and rushing inside, only to see her reflection in the mirror and have her suspicions confirmed—he had drawn all over her.

"Gray-sama! What have you done to Juvia's face?"

"What? Don't you like it?" Gray teased, surveying her reflection from the doorway.

She exceeded peach fuzz, and this masterpiece of his was years past a teenage kid going through puberty. He had taken the liberty to go all out, giving her a healthy sized beard and a thick, black moustache that would put even the Celestial Spirit King to shame.

"It won't come off!" Juvia cried, desperately splashing water on her face and wiping her cheeks.

"Yeah, it's not supposed to."

"What?!"

Gray shrugged as though the answer was obvious. "I used a waterproof marker."

"Waterproof?" Juvia's eyes widened in horror. "But Juvia's body is water itself!"

"That's the point," he said with a roll of his eyes. "It's no big deal. It'll wash off over the next few days."

"Then Juvia is to look this hideous for _the next few days?"_

"You don't look…that bad," Gray said, rubbing the back of his neck awkwardly.

And that was when Juvia turned on him—arms folded, eyes questioning, beard dripping wet in all its glory.

"Gray-sama thinks Juvia looks _good?_ " She gave him a pointed stare.

"Err, yeah," he lied.

"Gray-sama…" Juvia shook her head, smiling a smile she couldn't quite suppress. "You are _terrible_ at lying to Juvia."

He grinned at her. "Not so terrible when it comes to taking revenge though, huh?"

"Juvia still wishes you had let her take a photo that day," she huffed. "The braids looked so _sweet_!"

 _"Sweet?"_

He scowled at the memory. One of the hair ties had gotten stuck in his hair, and in the end, scissors became involved — it was either that or him ripping his hair out in frustration.

Thankfully, he'd needed a haircut anyway.

"Yes!" Juvia said, reaching up to tug on a lock of his hair fondly. " _So_ sweet."

"Not gettin' into this again, Juvia…"

"Gray-sama…"

"Though now that you mention it, where's that camera?" he asked, putting his hands on her shoulders and spinning her around so that they were both turned towards the mirror—Gray with a smug smile on his face, Juvia frowning at the sight of her beard again. "Because I figure _this_ one _definitely_ needs to go in the album."

Juvia glanced away, folding her arms and shrugging nonchalantly. "It seems Juvia misplaced the camera somehow."

"Like hell you did," Gray scoffed, knowing just how organised she was. For Mavis' sake, this girl even colour-coded her _hats_ and they were all the same friggin' colour.

Smirk on his face, Gray shoved her shoulder gently with his own. "You know you're even worse when it comes to lying, right?"

Nudging him back, she smiled. "Juvia knows."

"That so?" Gray went on, voice teasing. "Then I suppose you also know that it's your turn to get me back for drawing on your face?"

She smiled a little wider. "Juvia knows that too."

* * *

 _ii. drawing on her face whilst she sleeps_


	3. iii

**Author's Note: So, now for the 'battle' part of the prank war. I really loved writing this one! I bring you guys...a snowball fight! Let me know what you think ^.^**

* * *

 _iii._

* * *

When a snowball exploded against his bare back, he knew the fight was on.

Gray slowly turned around, eyes dark slits as he searched his surroundings for the culprit. She was somewhere in the garden, he knew as much, possibly lurking and planning her next attack or just as likely hiding as a friggin' puddle, laughing to herself over her lucky one-shot victory.

But it wasn't over yet. It had barely started. Throughout his childhood, snow was all he'd ever known. When he wasn't moulding ice, he was moulding snowballs to lob at Lyon. They'd build separate snow-forts, mountains of frost setting them up for a whole winter of battles ahead, and when the battles began, there were no rules, no time-outs and certainly no walking away from combat. It was snow warfare and the pair would never give in until they were both on the ground, numb, bruised and battered — or until Ur intervened, refraining them from killing each other.

If anything, the snow was his territory and he wasn't going to let Juvia get off that easy. He didn't go through years of snowball fights with Lyon and Natsu to get his ass handed to him by her so _quickly_ , damn it.

And so, Gray brought his hands together, fist striking into an open palm while his eyes sought her out.

Locked and sighted—Juvia was stood behind the one and only tree in their garden with her back pressed against the bark. She was trying to hide herself from him though it was no use; he always caught the blue of her hair with a familiar kind of ease.

"You've got some nerve…" Gray said in a low voice, watching as Juvia snuck a quick glance at him from behind the tree before erupting into a fit of giggles. He squinted at her. "You're fighting dirty, Juvia."

Juvia opened her mouth to retaliate, only to squeal and disappear from view again when a large snowball came hurling towards her with immense speed. It missed her by a fraction, whistling past to hit the fence with an unsatisfying splat instead.

Gray flexed his fingers, calling to her playfully, "Oi! You can't hide from an attack after challenging me! What's with that?"

"First," Juvia said, slowly tilting her head away from the tree to shoot him an accusing look, "Gray-sama must promise not to use his ice-make powers against Juvia."

"Oh yeah?"

"Yes. Because that would be cheating," she explained matter-of-factly before dodging another one of his snowballs with a panicked yelp. " _Gray-sama!"_

He smirked at her words, crouching down to roll a chunky-sized snowball instead of using his magic to do the job. He didn't need magic to take her on anyway. Gray had practically grown up playing in the snow years before harnessing ice-make powers. He still had the upper hand regardless. Juvia had no idea what she was in for.

Even so, as he pressed the tips of his fingers against the snowball to smoothen its edges, he decided it was a hell of a lot more fun to tease her. "Hey, if this were a water fight, you'd be water-slicing the crap outta me right about now. I figure I should be allowed to use a little ice-make magic too."

"That's not true, Gray-sama," Juvia said indignantly, and looking up, Gray could see that she still hadn't moved from her hiding place, wisps of blue hair peeking out from behind the tree.

Smiling to himself, he got to his feet and began trudging towards her, keeping his steps light and low against the snow.

"Juvia would also play fair!" she continued on and Gray resisted the urge to eye-roll at the defensive tone in her voice, thinking back to four months earlier when he had been watering the plants and had playfully sprayed her with the hose _once_ , only to end up drenched from head to toe by a friggin' tsunami in return.

" _That's_ not true and you know it," he said, rounding on her in one swift movement.

Startled, Juvia backed further against the tree, causing the snow resting on the branches to softly fall down in thick clumps, settling in their hair, dusting their lashes, enveloping them in white. Though, Gray barely flinched. His attention was focused on the blushing girl in front of him.

He placed one arm beside her head, the other tossing a snowball up and down in his hand as he smiled down at her. "Let's do it your way then."

Juvia eyed the snowball in his hand for a moment before meeting his eyes. "A fair fight?" she asked uncertainly.

"As fair as it can get, yeah," he said, ducking his head to tell her one last important detail. "Though, you lost this battle the second you threw that first snowball at me."

Eyes wide and heart hammering in her chest, she was gone, slipping and sliding past him, a dot of blue in their white garden—so much snow; so much ammunition to fuel his revenge on her.

Gray's lips tugged up in a satisfied smirk. He could have given her a head start. Hell, he could even let her win if he wanted to, but where was the fun in that?

In seconds, the air became thick with snowballs. Duck, dodge, cover. Shape, aim, throw. Gray's hands picked up snow like the two were made to go together, like black and blue, ice and water. He had snowball fights down to a science, each snowball of his perfect in size and density, and each swing of his arm enough to go the distance.

Juvia stood metres away from him, gloved hands frantically hurling misshapen snowballs in his direction. Hitting him once and getting attacked by an army in return, she screamed in protest, jumping behind the side of the house for cover.

Gray paused in his tracks, his breath leaving him in white puffs to rise to the clouds above. "Juvia?"

From the lull in action, he could only assume two things: one, she was making a stockpile of snowballs to retaliate with. Two, she'd friggin' done a runner.

"Oi! Juvia? You hiding again?" he called, making his way towards where she'd ducked for cover.

And then he heard a sputter of laughter, followed by the swoop of a snowball hitting him square in the chest.

"Juvia does not hide from her enemies!" she yelled, running into view to pelt him with as many snowballs as she had managed to carry in her arms.

But Gray took one look at her and burst out laughing.

She had returned to the battlefield wearing Mavis-knows how many layers of coats with her scarf wrapped around half her face ninja-style, and the glint of determination in her eyes reminded him of how she looked when she desperately gave her all against him in a friggin' game of Magnolia-Monopoly.

Cold or not, a snowball fight was a snowball fight and she didn't give in—ever.

She was a snow _warrior_.

Gray laughed, taking another snowball and whipping his arm back to send it flying towards her but he couldn't even aim it directly at her—he was laughing too hard. Shaking his head, he dropped his remaining warfare of snowballs to rake a hand through his snow-streaked hair before shooting her a sceptical look—one that said, _'are you kidding me right now?'_

The look didn't faze her. The snowballs continued to swoop towards him but he strode forwards anyway, ignoring her attacks. He knew there was a stupid grin plastered all over his face but he didn't care.

 _He could let her win. But again, where was the fun in that?_

"Gotcha," he said, catching her by the waist and lifting her up above the ground. Juvia squealed in surprise, the scarf slipping from her mouth as Gray flipped her around so that they both landed on the ground, side by side, their backs pressed into the soft snow.

With a glance towards her, he found her eyes closed, crinkled into a smile and her hair spilled out beneath her like blue ink on paper. She was still laughing.

Gray propped his hands behind his head. "So," he said, when it began to grow quiet, "your enemy, huh? Is that what I am now?"

Juvia turned on her side to get a better look at him, her cheek pressed against her gloved hand. Her eyes wandered over his face affectionately: the dark eyes, the sharp features, that easy smirk of his that pulled her in every time. Simply put, even his laughter had her heart fluttering in her chest.

"Gray-sama knows very well what he is to Juvia," she told him, just like that.

He pondered this for a moment.

From the corner of his eye, he caught her smile—kind of brilliant, bright smile that even had the power to make freshly lain snow look grey. And as he smiled back at her through the haze of falling snow, he realised that while he wasn't sure who had won their snowball fight, he knew he'd lost a different kind of battle to Juvia a long time ago.

Gray let his gaze travel back to the sky. Snow continued to fall like white petals from the clouds, soft and cool against his skin. He was always happiest when surrounded by the snow.

"Oi, Juvia. Aren't you cold?"

"No, Gray-sama."

"Yeah?" He smiled. "Me neither."

* * *

 _iii. snowball fight_


	4. iv

**Author's Note: Sorry for the crazy-late updates, I just started university and well...I'll say no more xD**

 **Anyway, this one is based on the Gruvia strip poker art that Mashima blessed us all with yesterday!**

* * *

 _iv._

* * *

Rain pouring down outside, empty mugs of hot chocolate on the nearby table, and a deck of cards split between the two of them — it started out as any other quiet night in their small home until Gray suggested they play _poker_.

"Give up yet?" High off the victory of having won the last three games in a row, Gray crossed both arms behind his head, smirking triumphantly at Juvia who looked up from her shuffling to shoot him a pointed glare.

"Juvia will not lose to Gray-sama in the next round."

"Oh, yeah?" He grinned. "What makes you so sure you'll beat me?"

"Because," she said with a shrewd smile, "Juvia used the first few games to study her opponent _very_ closely…"

Hearing that, he laughed, sitting up properly, keeping his eyes locked on hers. This game of poker had just gotten a whole lot more interesting.

"So, you think you've got me all figured out from a couple of games? Come on, Juvia. Don't give me that."

"Juvia will prove herself," she declared, confident. "She'll give it her all and will win."

But he was confident too—confident in his ability and in his years of experience. Hell, there had even been a time where Gray had beaten Cana, Fairy Tail's very best whether drunk or sober. Playing Juvia, on the other hand, should be a breeze compared to what that game had been.

Yet, the determined glint in her eyes had him rising to the challenge with excitement. He'd seen that look many times before. It reminded him of the time he'd been up against her in the Grand Magic Games starter, _'Hidden'._

 _'Juvia will not hold back, Gray-sama.'_

And he had _known_ that she sure as hell wouldn't.

Nowadays, living with her, he'd come across that same expression often enough — every time he'd catch her by surprise in training, moments where she'd fight back in a game of magical Pictionary, all the times they'd take trips to the beach and race each other to the shoreline — that look made an appearance whenever they found themselves in a challenge with one another.

There was something very enticing about being up against her. It always made his heart beat a little faster in his chest, and this time was no different.

"I'd like to see you try," he told her, a playful gleam in his eyes as he took the cards from her, shuffling expertly.

"Juvia will try. 100%!"

Gray chuckled under his breath. "If anything, you'll 100% _lose."_

"Gray-sama, you shouldn't underestimate your opponent," Juvia huffed, taking the cards back. "You are too confident."

"You really think you can beat me after losing the last three in a row?" he asked in disbelief. "'Cause if that's the case, why don't we make it more interesting then?"

Smirking to himself, Gray leaned closer to her, both arms outstretched on either side and face inches away from hers. He watched as her eyes widened in surprise, her fingers frozen mid-shuffle, though she made no move to lean away.

One thing he knew when it came to battles was that he wasn't the type to go easy on his opponents, regardless of who they were. Another thing—Juvia was no exception to that rule.

"What do you say to a game of strip poker?"

"Eh?!" Juvia's face immediately erupted in a blush, and in all her fluster, she bumped heads with him, the cards slipping from her fingers to land in a heap on the floor. " _S-strip_ poker—?" she squeaked.

"That's what I said. Why? Somethin' the matter?" he asked, looking down as he picked up the cards so she wouldn't catch the smile working on his lips.

Sometimes, teasing her was just too _easy_.

"If you're so sure you'll win, what's the problem?" Gray said, glancing in her direction only to find her eyeing the cards warily. "You're not backing out now, are you, Juvia?"

And sometimes, it was just the exact _opposite_ of easy.

Fifteen minutes later, Gray had somehow found himself sat in his boxers opposite a half-dressed Juvia, red in the face and unsure as to whether he even wanted to win this game or not anymore.

To hell with winning, he wasn't even sure where to friggin' _look_.

Strip poker — he'd passed it off as an empty challenge, an offhand suggestion, a way to make her accept defeat once and for all. He was certain there wasn't a chance in hell she'd actually a _gree_ to playing against him.

Yet, there they were, battling it out, more clothes on the floor than there were on their bodies. His shirt, her shirt, his shoes, her shoes, his pants, her bra—things were scarily even.

What's worse, she'd gotten better at the game. Whether this was a result of beginner's luck or his brain blowing a fuse, he didn't know. What he did know was that his eyes kept travelling back to her without permission, and then moments later, he'd realise he was staring and the heat would rush to his face before he'd jerk his head away, back to his cards which he couldn't even make sense of anymore. They were just meaningless shapes and numbers at this point.

"Gray-sama," Juvia said quietly, her eyes flicking up to his before falling back to her card.

"Hm?"

"It's…it's your turn."

"Oh, yeah…" he muttered, keeping his eyes locked on the deck of cards in front instead of wandering up to Juvia, who had lost everything asides from the skirt around her waist and that friggin' hat on top of her head.

How in the hell the hat wasn't the first thing to be stripped off, he had no idea, but if she'd forgotten about it, that meant the next thing to leave her body would be the skirt, and Gray wasn't mentally prepared for that to happen yet.

Straining his eyes away from her, he glared at the card in his hands, the diamonds beginning to blur into blotches of red.

It wasn't like they hadn't stripped in front of each other before, damn it. It had been a month since Juvia had picked up his stripping habit during training, and after embarrassed squeals, lots of blushing followed by Gray reaching down to give her something of his to wear—only to realise he had nothing to give—they'd begun to grow used to fighting side by side half-dressed.

Heck, Juvia had even started bringing extra outfits for herself along to missions.

But there was a difference between stripping during professional situations, like training or during missions, and stripping in the middle of their living room, alone with no other distractions to keep his mind at bay. One situation would lead to a win on the battlefield, the other would lead to thoughts that Gray couldn't afford to explore right now, not when he was trying to keep his focus on the game and not her. Otherwise, he'd give himself away completely.

"Ah, Juvia's turn…"

It was the deciding card.

Sneaking a peek, Gray waited for what was like the slowest ten seconds of his life as Juvia leaned forward, one arm outstretched to pick a card from the pile, the other plastered to her chest to keep herself from coming undone in front of him.

Gray averted his gaze, his face on fire.

It had started off as any other quiet night in their small home, but took one hell of a turn. If he'd learnt anything from this, it was not to underestimate Juvia's nerve, because he was definitely paying for it now.

"Gray-sama? What card did you get?" Juvia's voice cut into his thoughts, and Gray's heart was doing laps in his chest.

Not trusting himself to look up or to say anything else, Gray simply replied with, "What card did _you_ get?"

"Ah…" She paused. "Shall we reveal them at the same time?"

He took a ragged breath, passing a hand through his hair. "Sure…ready when you are."

It wasn't in his nature to let someone else win, and it sure as hell wasn't in his nature to take joy in losing, but when he saw that Juvia's card was higher than his six of diamonds, he had never been so ready to _strip._

Gray dropped his cards on the floor, sighing in relief.

Forget manly pride; it was better this way…before all blood rushed _south_.

"Glad that's over," he muttered to himself, getting to his feet and dipping his fingers under the hem of his boxers, ready to do what he did best: strip. "Looks like you got me there, Juvia."

Juvia beamed at him, proud of her victory. "Juvia is in shock! She can't believe she won!"

"Me neither," Gray said, pointing to her. "And you did it with that friggin' hat still on your head too."

"Eh? Juvia's hat…?"

And before he even had the chance to process what she was about to do next, she reached up to take her hat off, her hands far away from her naked chest which was very much in Gray's line of vision.

Her win and his loss? It had all been for nothing in the end.

* * *

 _iv. strip poker_


	5. v

**Author's Note: Hello! In the middle of a Gruvia drought (when will we next see them in the manga T_T) and so, I have brought some Gruvia for you all! ...okay enough with the dramatic entrance.**

 **I wrote this one for rain-on-me's birthday, even tried making it cake themed lol. Silly as per usual.**

* * *

 _v._

* * *

"Gray-sama?" Juvia called his name from the kitchen in a sing-song voice, light and melodic in the hours just before sunset.

Having spent the day creating ice sculptures and fountains for a new holiday resort, the two had been exhausted on the way home, Juvia nodding off on Gray's shoulder half an hour into the journey whilst he stared out of the train window at nothing in particular — eyes glossing over the passing clouds and the sky as it slowly changed from shades of blue to pink and orange.

It had been a long day, the type that would usually end in a cool bath, warm dinner and them lounging around on the couch side by side, either flicking through channels on their TV lacrima or talking quietly late into the night.

But instead, the moment Juvia had burst through the front door, she'd been off like a shot, dropping her things in her room before rushing to the kitchen, her braided hair flapping behind her like two blue whips.

Gray, on the other hand, had just blinked after her in confusion, still stood by the front door with his bag slung over his shoulder.

He figured maybe she was just eager to make dinner tonight. Their garden had been doing pretty well lately; it was Juvia's pride and joy. Often enough, he would wake up to find her out back there, picking vegetables with a sunhat perched low on top of her blue curls, working hard to keep things as they should be.

Overtime, as the flowers they planted bloomed, and trinkets added themselves to shelves, the empty house they'd moved into together became more and more like a home.

"Gray-sama!" Juvia's voice called for him again, this time sounding a lot closer.

Freshly bathed and lost in the pages of a book he'd been reading over the last few days or so, Gray flipped to the next chapter, not looking up. "Hm?"

"Gray-sama, could you please come and tell Juvia if this frosting tastes good?"

Though _that_ certainly made him look up.

Folding the corner of the page, Gray sat up properly, nose scrunched up in question. "Frosting? What d'ya need that for?"

"Ah…" Juvia appeared in the doorway, eyes bright, smile wide. "Juvia is baking a cake!" she announced, powdered hands clasped tightly under her chin.

"A cake…?"

"A cake!"

Gray arched a brow, glancing towards the clock. " _Now?_ At this time? Aren't you tired from today's job?"

Juvia shook her head, and to prove she was still as energetic as ever, she skipped over to him, taking his hand in hers. "It will only take a moment, Gray-sama," she said, pulling him to his feet, though with no such luck—he stayed sat down.

Amused, Gray watched her struggle for a moment—watched as the tugs on his hand became harder and her cheeks flushed crimson—before he finally gave in, closing the book with a sigh and rising to stand beside her.

"Alright, alright. You got my attention," he said as Juvia led him to the kitchen, hand loosely clasped in hers.

"Juvia is trying a new recipe."

"Oh yeah?"

"This is why she wants to hear what Gray-sama thinks," she explained, looking over her shoulder to give him a smile.

In the kitchen, everything was spotless as usual. The only thing that gave away the fact Juvia had been at work was the smell of vanilla, a sole mixing bowl, and the freshly baked sponge cake placed on the cooling rack, sweet and fluffy by the looks of it.

Gray folded his arms, tilting his head to the side to smirk at her. "So, what's the occasion?"

"Ah…occasion?" Juvia asked, distractedly mixing the contents of the bowl.

"Yeah." He took a step closer, leaning back against the counter to peer down at her through dark locks of hair. His eyes narrowed suspiciously. "There's _always_ gotta be an occasion with you…so what is it? A hundred days since we started living together or somethin'?"

Juvia's smile gave her away in an instant, as did the way her eyes suddenly lit up when she turned to look at him. "Gray-sama remembered too?"

"Nah," he admitted, smiling back. "I just know you."

Hearing his words, she blushed, her eyes growing softer. "Juvia sees."

"What I mean is…" He glanced away, passing a hand through his hair. "You're good at remembering days for this kinda stuff and I'm…not."

"In that case, Juvia can remember for the both of us," she told him, simple as that.

Gray said nothing, straightening up and dipping his hands into his pockets, ignoring that stirring in his chest—it had a habit of showing up often nowadays.

Days and months and years were just features of a calendar. He figured it'd been around three months since he and Juvia started living together. Though, a hundred days? That was just a lucky guess on his behalf. He wasn't one to keep track of such things, barely remembering any dates asides from the select few birthdays and anniversaries.

Even so, if he didn't remember when, he'd be lying like hell if he were to say he didn't remember moments spent with her in detail for all they were.

Ignoring the warmth spreading to his cheeks, he cleared his throat. "So, uh, what was that thing you wanted me to try?"

"Ah…" Juvia grabbed the mixing bowl and using a spoon, she scooped out a large amount of chocolate coloured frosting. "Juvia would just like to know Gray-sama's opinion…whether it is too sweet, not sweet enough…"

She rambled on, a light blush on her cheeks as she lifted the spoon up to Gray. "Say _'aah'_ , Gray-sama!"

One look at the spoon and Juvia on her tiptoes with her mouth slightly open, prompting him to do the same, was all it took to remind him of a memory he already had no trouble remembering.

Frankly, it was a memory he'd tried to forget.

Gray scowled, lowering her arm away from him. "No way am I letting you feed me again after what happened last time."

His team had lost to her team after the Grand Magic Games, the penalty being to do whatever they were told. At first, he thought he'd gotten off lightly when Juvia only insisted on feeding him.

Though, that was before she friggin' shoved a massive spoon down his throat.

"Gray-sama…" Juvia puffed out her cheeks and frowned at him.

Gray folded his arms, staring her down. "No."

"Juvia was nervous last time! She promises to be more careful," she protested, flooding his mind with the image of her offering him water from her own friggin' body after the whole ordeal.

The thought made his cheeks blaze. "Like hell!"

" _Gray-sama—"_

"Didn't you hear me the first time? Not a chance, Juvia."

"A little bit! A _spoonful_ won't do you any harm—"

"Don't give me that! It was just a spoonful last time too and I almost ended up friggin' _choking—"_

Juvia huffed, glancing off to the side. "Gray-sama is so dramatic…"

With a roll of his eyes, he reached forward, taking the spoon from her. "Why don't _you_ just taste it then?"

"Juvia?"

"Yeah," he said, holding the spoon out to her. "Here."

"G-Gray-sama feeding _Juvia?_ " She quickly squeezed her eyes shut, hands clasped together, mouth open—

—and felt something cold against her nose.

When she opened her eyes, Gray was laughing, hard. In all her excitement, she'd missed the mischievous glint that had been in his eyes. She touched her nose and looked down at her fingers. Frosting. He had wiped it all over her nose.

"Gray-sama! So mean!"

"Hey, you should've seen it comin'." Gray smirked at her, flicking her nose with his finger. He tasted the frosting. "Not bad," he said, before leaving the kitchen to go back to reading his book, smile still wide on his face.

* * *

 _v. wiping food on her nose_


	6. vi

**Author's Note: Long time no see! Wrote this one for Gruvia Week last month, the prompt was 'misunderstanding'.**

 **I've actually had this idea for like 2 years now, it came to me one day when I was talking to my good friend thatsvicchan. She asked me "if Gray and Juvia were ever to fight about something, what would it be?" and that led to this stupid idea lmao.** **Hope it makes you smile, please leave some feedback if you have the time! ^.^**

* * *

 _vi._

* * *

When they first started living together, things weren't always so smooth.

There had been bumps along the way; little disruptions to their new lives as housemates that would appear every now and then, though they'd always work through it. With Fairy Tail's disbandment, the two knew they had only each other, and within one month, they had already adjusted, often cooking, working and relaxing together; things were comfortable between them.

But now, as Juvia opened the front door and stepped inside their home, arms loaded with grocery bags and feet wiping snow off onto the mat, she realised there was still _one_ last bump in their lives as housemates left—

"Gray-sama, it is too cold in here!"

—and that was the _thermostat._

"What're you talking about? If you ask me, it's perfect in here," Gray said, taking the groceries from her hands and lightly kicking the door shut behind her.

Arms folded, Juvia hugged herself tight, shivering. "But Juvia thinks it's colder _inside_ the house than it was outside…"

Gray scoffed. "It ain't _that_ cold. I only set the thermostat down by one degree."

" _One_ degree?" she asked, incredulous.

" _One_ degree," he told her firmly, strolling off into the kitchen— _fully_ dressed, Juvia noted.

She watched him go, waiting to hear the clatter of the cupboards before making her move towards the thermostat. Tiptoeing, she chanced a quick glance over her shoulder just to be safe. With no one else around, she turned back to the thermostat to find that the temperature had been lowered well into the minus region, just as she'd suspected. _One degree,_ he had said.

Juvia huffed to herself, reached forwards and turned the temperature back up.

* * *

It was only when Gray noticed he was sat in nothing but his boxers, yet he was _still_ hot, that he realised something was up.

"Why the hell is it so hot? It's like an oven in here…" he muttered, wiping the sweat off his forehead. Setting his pen aside, he began fanning himself with his sketchpad, to no effect—he was still roasting.

Something wasn't right.

It never got this hot in their home, not when he was around, and it just so happened that Juvia had one _hell_ of a guilty look on her face.

"Oi, Juvia." Gray peered at her. "Aren't you hot too?"

"Juvia's fine," she replied airily, busy with her knitwork.

"Oh yeah?" Hands in his pockets, he headed over to the thermostat, watching her carefully. "So then you won't mind if I turn it down by a couple of degrees, right?"

"Not at all, Gray-sama."

That was all the go-ahead he needed. Saying one thing and doing another, Gray turned the dial to the far left in one swift motion, plunging them into absolute zero conditions.

" _Gray-sama_!" her voice rang out, loud and accusatory. "Juvia saw that!"

Startled, Gray jumped away from the thermostat, hands in the air, guilty like a child who'd been caught in the middle of mischief.

She didn't look happy with him. Her mouth was exaggeratedly curved downwards, blue eyes fixed on him as they engaged in a brief staring contest—her pout against his scowl. He could sense she was about to crack, and a part of him wondered what would happen. Till this day, he couldn't recall a time he'd ever been on the receiving end of Juvia's glare.

He'd be lying if he said he wasn't a little interested in finding out.

Breaking the silence, Juvia huffed and shot up from her seat, marching over to the thermostat. Eyes locked on his, she twisted the knob to the right again, turning the temperature up. "Gray-sama does not know the meaning of ' _a couple of degrees'._ "

"Two degrees, twenty degrees…" Gray lowered it down once more, cocking his head to the side with a smile. "Who's to say what the difference is, huh?"

The two exchanged pointed glares.

"Gray-sama…" She turned it back up. "Stop."

"Juvia…" He turned it back down. " _No_."

"But Juvia gets too cold in these winter times!"

 _"Knit yourself a damn sweater!"_

"Well, Gray-sama can just s _trip_ if he's too warm," she told him, hand on the dial. " _He already leaves his clothes everywhere as it is!"_

"Oh yeah? And what happens after I run out of clothes to strip, huh?" he drawled, taking charge of the thermostat again. "I melt and turn into a friggin' puddle like you do? Nah, I'll pass on that, thanks!"

Juvia gasped audibly. "Juvia does not turn into a _puddle!"_

"Yeah, well, you ain't gonna turn into an ice cube if it's a little cold either!"

"A _little_ cold?! Juvia does not understand how you can live in such arctic conditions!"

" _I'm a friggin' ice mage!"_

One turn too many, and the dial broke apart in his hands before falling to the ground with a deafening clatter. The pair fell silent, first staring at each other, then at where the thermostat had been, and now at the broken remains on the floor between them.

* * *

Just like the rest of the house, their fireplace was small, its flames casting long shadows over the rug and gently warming Juvia's hands as she crouched down in front of it. They had tried fixing the thermostat, though failed horribly—neither of them was much of the technical sort, especially Gray. Fondly, she found herself recalling how last week, he had tried to turn the TV lacrima on with the remote facing backwards, and the week before, where he had wanted to help her with dinner but forgot to turn the oven on. Whilst he had been scratching his head in confusion, she had found the whole ordeal hilarious—the thought still brought a smile to her lips, even when she was convincing herself she was annoyed with him.

Juvia stretched her hands out a little further, taking comfort in the heat, when she felt a thick fabric fall over her head, followed by a body crashing down beside her, their shoulders brushing. Pulling the blanket off her head, her eyes found Gray. He was sat with his elbows resting on his knees, face turned towards her, sharp features illuminated by the flames. As if he wanted to say something, his mouth twitched—then broke into one of his lazy smiles, and before long, she found herself smiling too, unable to resist the tug at the corner of her lips.

"Truce?" he asked her.

"Truce," she said.

She was never one to hold onto anger, and in any case, how could she ever stay mad at him?

"Gray-sama, Juvia is sorry…"

"Nah, don't do that. I'm the one who acted like an idiot, I'm sorry," he cut in, leaning forward to wrap the blanket around her a little tighter. "Warm enough?"

Juvia nodded. "Thank you."

"Don't mention it." He passed a hand through his hair sheepishly, glancing off towards the fireplace. "I, err, called the gas company to come by tomorrow and fix the thermostat."

She hummed in reply. "That's good."

"Yeah."

They sat in silence for a while, listening to the crackle of the firewood. Juvia drew the blanket snugger around her body, already feeling lighter with the return of his smile. She thought to herself how when Fairy Tail had disbanded, to her, it felt like saying goodbye to her family once more, and she knew Gray felt the same way. The past month had been difficult to adjust to at first; the area was unfamiliar, jobs had been sparse, their house was a lot quieter than their rowdy guild hall. But despite all of these things, they always found comfort in each other's company, and the days that passed with him were days she cherished.

She recalled the first ever morning they'd shared—how she had been up bright and early with the birds, cracking eggs into the frying pan, when Gray had suddenly strolled into the kitchen. Bare from head to toe, he rubbed sleep from his eyes and mumbled something that sounded a lot like "Mornin' Juvia,", as though it was a regular occurrence to be butt-naked in the kitchen. Juvia, unable to respond, had hid her blush behind her hands and squeaked in surprise, whilst Gray blinked at her, cursed, and ran back to his room to make himself decent.

Needless to say, the eggs had burnt that day.

Now, she blushed at the memory, a laugh filling the silence between them.

Beside her, Gray arched a brow. "What you laughin' at?" He nudged her playfully. "Wanna let me in on the joke?"

"Juvia was just thinking about our first morning together in this house," she said, eyes soft as she looked around their small living room.

"Our first morning, huh…" He drifted off, caught in the memory, before realisation hit him, hard. "H-hey! You gotta forget that ever happened, okay, Juvia?"

" _Mm_ …Juvia doesn't want to forget it."

"What?" He faltered, red faced. "Well, it's not like you were all that innocent in the beginning either."

"Heh?!" Juvia blinked. "Juvia has never done anything so indecent—"

"Oh yeah?" Gray raised his eyebrows at her. "When we first moved in, you'd spend so friggin' long in the shower, you'd end up using all the water. You never even heard me knocking on the door telling you to hurry the hell up—"

"Juvia admits to that, but that isn't nearly as bad as what Gray-sama did."

"You didn't let me finish," Gray said, a smirk spreading wide on his face. "You never heard me telling you to hurry up…because you were too busy singing your heart out to one of Gajeel's crappy songs like the number one fan of his that you _are."_

Juvia gasped in horror. "Gray-sama _heard_ Juvia?!"

He grinned. "Every single ' _shoobi-doo-ba'_."

"Juvia is mortified! _"_ She let out a dramatic cry, hiding her face in her hands.

Gray laughed, pulling her hands away from her face. "Oi, don't do that. You were pretty good. Say, you ever consider performin' as a double act?"

" _Gray-sama!"_ She shoved him, and he shoved her back, their laughter the only sound filling the room aside from the firewood, before settling down into quiet conversation again.

Juvia sighed, resting her head on his shoulder. "Gray-sama is mean. He teases Juvia too much."

"Get used to it," he told her. "It's one of the perks that comes with living with me."

"What is another one of Gray-sama's perks?" Juvia mused. "The fact that he snores very loudly? That he strips without any self control? Perhaps his newfound talent of breaking thermostats?"

"Oi!"

She laughed softly, cuddling closer to him. "Still, Juvia likes living with Gray-sama. She feels at home with you."

Gray smiled at her words, letting her lean against him. He said nothing as he watched the flames in front curl and sway—simply listened to her voice by his side as she continued to reminisce about their earlier days, her conversational whispers falling softly in the room, barely audible over the crackle of the fire—whilst he thought about all the ways in which her earlier statement was right.

* * *

 _vi. fighting over the thermostat_


End file.
